Self-aligning leader pin oiler



Dec. 17, 1940- E. A. BAUMBACH 2,225,145

SELF-ALIGNING LEADER PIN OILER Filed Aug. 1, 1958 5472?? Q fim AWPatented Dec. 17, 1940 UNITED STATES PATENT" OFFICE I 2,225,145SELF-ALIGNING LEADER PIN OILER Emil A. .Baumbach, Chicago, Ill.Application August 1, 1938, Serial No, 222,370

3 Claims. (o1. s0-s-5) This invention relates to die sets and moreparticularly to improvements 'in self-aligning leader pin oilersassociated therewith. This invention is animprovement over thedisclosure of my co-pending application Serial No. 193,865, filed March4, 1938, and which culminated in Patent No. 2,181,360.

It is of particular importance that proper lubrication of leader pinsused in punch and die sets be assuredat all times and also that suchlubrication be free from dirt, grime; and other foreign matter. Thefunction of leader pins in punch and die sets is to retain the lower dieshoe and the upper punch head in proper alignmentthroughout theirrelative movement so that the punch and die supported by theserespective parts may always engage in identically the. samerelationship. As the tolerance per mitted in the aligning of punches anddies is very slight, leader pins and their assembly must not only beexceedingly accurate, but also should retain their accuracy throughoutthe life of the die sets. Proper lubrication is one means whereby theactive life of punch and die sets may be extended. To insure theretention of this accuracy, it has become common practice to hardeneither the leader pins or the leader pin bushings, or both, and toinsurelong life it is also desirable to employ the longest'leader pin bushingspossible consistent with the thickness of the punch'head and othermechanical limitations.

In my aboveidentified co-pending application I disclose a' supplementaryleader; pin oiler which may removably be attached to an leader pin setas desired, the use of which permits the employment of long leader pinbushings and obviates the necessity for counterboring the punch head toreceive oilers inserted therein.

In the present invention I disclose a similar device which, in addition,provides many structural and functional advantages, particularly withrespect to simplicity of construction, by the use of a minimum number ofeasily assembled parts whereby the cost of manufacture isreduced and bythe provision of means for selfaligning of the oiler whereby metallicfriction and consequent rapid wear are eliminated. 1

A salient feature of this invention is its selfaligning characteristicswherebythe lubricator is automatically kept in alignment with respect tothe axis of the leader pin and whereby a consistently true and accuratespacing of the parts may be insured at all times.

Another equally important feature of this invention is the provision ofacompression spring to keep the oiler in contact with the punch head,which spring is in the shape of an inverted cone. By the use of this;spring, mechanical friction between the spring and the leaderpin itsurrounds is totally eliminated, with a consequent elimination of wearon'bo-th spring and leader pin.

Referring to the drawing Figure 1 is a vertical sectional View through adie set and illustrates two of the oilers in operating position. 7 s

Fig. 2 is an enlarged and expanded perspective view in longitudinalsection of the wick housing and cover. 1

Fig. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view through the wickhousing and casing as assembled.

Fig: 4- is a adapted for-usein the wick housing.

Referring to the drawing in detail, in Figure l the usual punch and dieset is-shown comprising the die shoe I, the upwardly extending leaderpins 2', and the vertically reciprocating punch head 3. a The punch head3 is usually provided with bushings 4 surrounding the leader pins, and,aspreviously indicated, it is of importance that these bushings be aslong as conveniently possible so that the greatest amount of bearingsurfaceis "present within the necessary mechanical limitations. I

Disposed about each of the leader pins and positionedimmediatelybelowthe moving punch head '3 isan oil wick- 6 encased withina wick housing and slidably mounted on each of the leader pins. Asshown, the wick housing 5 .is spaced from the leader pin and there istherefore no metallic contact of thewick housing with the leader pin. 1To prevent misalign ient and the consequent metal contactand wear andalso to protect said wick from dustlandhard blows, the wick and itshousing are contained within a protective aligning casing T into whichthe wick housing 5 is adapted to be fitted, its periphery making a pressfit with the inner surface 8 of said cover. The covert-alsoha'sa taperedor conical upper portion 9 which is adapted to engage with a similarlyinclined portion- It at the end of the leader pin bushi-ng'd. Theengagement of these complemental portions serves to center the entirelubricator'with respect to the axis of the leader pins 2 at alltimes.

This same cover 1 is also formed with an outwardly extending peripheryll shaped to topplan view of one form of wick ing area of the die set,while its larger upper portion permits the operator more readily toappreciate movement of the punch holder and therefore advances thewarning given to the workman that the punch head is moving. Likewise,the periphery H at the lower end of the oiler is particularly adapted toengage with and seat this portion of the spring and to: transmittheupward pressure thereof to the inclined aligning face 9.

As the leader pin bushing against which this lubricator bears must havean inclined surface at its lower end, and as these bearings are usuallyhardened for long wear, it is advisable that a counterbore or taperedsurface be given to one end of these bushings before they are hardened.However, it is to be understood that, if desired, such inclined contourmay be given the lower end of a hardened bearing by any mechanic throughthe use of a grinding wheel or other suitable mechanism for machininghardened metal. It is, of course, important thatthis counterbore beaccurate and present a surface in true alignment with the axis of theleader pin so that the lubricator casing 1 which bears thereagainst maymaintain in accurate alignment the wick housing which it encloses.

It will be noted that the metal wick holder 5 is spaced from the leaderpin, and, by the selfaligning characteristic of this oiler, it is keptfrom tilting or otherwise working into a position where any metal willcontact the leader pin with a resulting wear on both of these parts. Asthe leader pins 2 are customarily provided with a plurality of oildistributing grooves or oil ladders 2, as shown in Fig. 1, it willreadily be seen that contact of metal therewith not only greatlyinduceswear, but also any metal portions of the oiler may readily catch in andclog these grooves. By the before-described self-aligning feature of mydevice, this metal-to-metal contact between moving parts is avoided.

Suitable oil holes may be provided in the cover 1 and the wick housing 5such as the registering openings 13 and M, respectively. Through theseholes additional oil may be added to the felt wick 6 as desired.

Structural changes may, of course, be made without departing from thespirit of my invention; for instance, the wick housing and easing may beintegral if desired. Therefore, it is desired that the invention belimited only by the prior art and the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. The combination with a die shoe, a leader pin extending upwardlytherefrom, and a punch head having an opening large enough to slip overthe end of the leader pin and into which said leader pin extends forguiding the punch head, of means for lubricating the leader pincomprising an annular wick surrounding and engaging the leader pin, anannular wick holding and carrying device capable of slipping over theend of the leader pin and surrounding said leader pin and spacedradially therefrom and not connected with said punch head, and a coilcompression spring surrounding said leader pin compresed by the downwardmovement of the punch head and tending to urge said device upwardlytoward the punch head, said device having an upper .portion surroundingand spaced from said leader pin and. centered by said punch head so thatno part of said annular wick-holding and carrying device is inengagement with the leader pin, said wick being held in and carried bysaid wick-holding device when the device is separated from the leaderpin.

2. The combination with a die shoe having a leader pin secured theretoand a punch holder having an opening through which said leader pinextends, said punch holder being movable up and down with respect tosaid die shoe, of an annular container and carrier surrounding saidleader pin and spaced radially therefrom between said die shoe and punchholder and not connected with said punch holder, said container andcarrier having an annular opening on its inner side adjacent the leaderpin, a lubricant carrier in and carried by said container projectinginwardly therefrom into engagement with said leader pin, an annularcentering member telescoping with respect to said container closelyenough to center it and having a tapering self-centering engagement withsaid punch holder for holding both the container and the centeringmember out of engagement with said leader pin, said lubricant carrierbeing held in and carried by said container, and a coil compressionspring surrounding said leader pin bearing upwardly on vsaid containerfor holding it against said punch holder as the punch holder moves upand down whereby when the punch holder moves downwardly it pushes thecontainer ahead of it and whereby when the punch head moves upwardly thespring causes the container to follow up the punch head.

3. The combination with a die shoe having a leader pin secured theretoand a punch holder having an opening through which said leader pinextends, said punch holder being movable up and down with respect tosaid die shoe, of an annular container surrounding said leader pin andspaced radially therefrom between said die shoe and punch holder and notconnected with said punch holder, said container having an annularopening on its inner side adjacent the leader pin, a lubricant carrierin said container projecting inwardly therefrom into engagement withsaid leader pin, an annular centering member telescoping with respect tosaid container and having a conical portion in self-centering engagementwith said punch holder, and a coil compression spring surrounding saidleader pin bearing upwardly on-said container for holding it againstsaid punch holder as the punch holder moves up and down whereby when thepunch holder moves downwardly it pushes the container ahead of it andwhereby when the punch head moves upwardly the spring causes thecontainer to follow up the punch head, said telescoping member having adownwardly-extending peripheral skirt por tion surrounding and spacedfrom said annular container, the upper end of said coil spring beingseated between said container and skirt portion.

EMIL A. BAUMBACH.

